The Home of Stretch Fit Pattern Making

Here you will find out everything you need to know about making stretch fit patterns

Previously known as "The Secret Art of Making Patterns for Swimwear", this site is evolving to include other stretch fit topics, like the integration of bras into swimwear and making leotards for dancewear. Although all the essential content is already online, I still have much more to add, so give me time and keep checking the notice board to see what's new.

While the site is aimed at fashion students being taught ready-to-wear techniques for industry, many home sewers should find the information useful in answering questions and helping them to make their own swimwear.

Students will explore all the properties and handling techniques of stretch. We will show you all the tools you need to draft your own paper patterns and introduce you to CAD software. We will show you how to draft all the basic blocks from your own measurements and/or from a set of standard measurements. We will also show you the basics of using alternative fabric and paper draping techniques to create patterns.

For those sewers with little pattern experience or no time, there is also a Lazy Person's pattern library that works by typing in your own measurements for a customised pattern. This is no substitute for learning how to do things yourself however ... in reality, you'll probably lose more time and money in wasted fabrics by skipping the learning process!